Hugh Schuitemaker, Murray Pioneer
Struggling Riverland grape growers would have a better chance of staying in the industry – and sustaining the region’s economy – if an indicative pricing Bill being introduced to State Parliament today becomes law, an SA MP says.
The Bill would force processors to release indicative prices by September 30 each year, giving growers the choice of opting out of loss-making vintages months in advance, rather than plunging further into debt.
Currently, growers are typically forced to wait until December, January and even February to receive indicative – or estimated – prices, meaning they have already committed water and other inputs to their vineyards, without knowing if their investments are worthwhile.
MLC Sarah Game will introduce the Bill to the upper house this afternoon and said it has the support of Riverland growers.
“It’s important members know that local growers back this legislation and are in fact writing to the Premier, to the Leader of the Opposition in this house, and to other SA politicians pleading for their non-partisan support,” Dr Game will tell her fellow MPs.
“If growers had earlier notice of what prices per tonne their grapes were likely to fetch, they would suddenly have a powerful new business tool.
“This tool would allow them to make crucial decisions two or three months earlier: Whether to opt out of the coming vintage or press ahead.”
Dr Game – who recently launched her Fair Go political party – will tell her fellow members that having indicative prices by September 30 would “stop the bleeding for many growers” already in debt.
“It would ensure they’re not pointlessly ploughing more money into loss-making crops,” she will tell her fellow MPs.
“And by doing so it would enable them to potentially ride out a bad year, minimise their debt, and remain in the industry in the medium to long-term.
“Wine-grape growing remains the main financial driver of the region, but our recent discussions with industry figures, including growers, and even with a local-government leader from the Riverland, confirm our worst fears: People are exiting the industry.”
Dr Game said while preparing her legislation, her office heard anecdotal reports that up to 50 per cent of full-time Riverland grape growers were currently receiving Farm Household Allowance.
Dr Game told The Murray Pioneer, that unlike other recent State Government “hand-outs”, her Bill presents no extra impost on the state’s taxpayers.
“If mental health and the preservation of functioning family units matter in places like Whyalla and Port Pirie, and in communities impacted by the algal bloom disaster, they should also matter in SA grape-growing regions, like the Riverland,” she will say.
Dr Game said any actions resulting from a recent Senate committee and federal review into existing winegrape purchasing arrangements would come “too late” for Riverland growers.
This article appeared in Murray Pioneer, 3 September 2025.
